As the Texas Rangers are looking to win the 2026 World Series and get back to the impressive nature they played with back in 2024, the team would need to be healthy in order to do so. However, Rangers star pitcher Jacob deGrom would experience a setback after being scheduled to make his season debut on Saturday.
The team would announce that deGrom has been “scratched” from his start against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday, due to what they're listing as “neck stiffness.” Instead, it will be Jacob Latz that takes the mound for deGrom in Philadelphia on Saturday.
“RHP Jacob deGrom has been scratched from Saturday's scheduled start in Philadelphia due to neck stiffness. LHP Jacob Latz will make today's start for Texas,” the team's PR page wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Rangers taking caution with Jacob deGrom
The 37-year-old has dealt with a ton of significant injuries in the past, but the neck stiffness that he was scratched with on Saturday doesn't appear to be anything long-term, as reported by Jared Sandler. Instead, it was more “made out of an abundance of caution.”
“Jacob deGrom has been scratched due to neck stiffness, and Jacob Latz will start in his place,” Sandler wrote on X. “The move is made out of an abundance of caution, and it is not believed to be serious. There's a chance he could start before the end of the road trip.”
Last season, deGrom recorded a 2.97 ERA to go along with 185 strikeouts and a 12-8 record.
At any rate, deGrom looks to start his 13th season with a bang as his first start of the season is hopefully made before the end of the current road trip, as Sandler suggests. While the current series against the Phillies ends on Sunday, the Rangers stay on the road for a three-game set against the Baltimore Orioles, which starts Monday and ends on Wednesday.
So far, Texas starts 0-1 after the Opening Day loss to Philadelphia on Friday.
